Related papers: Hot white dwarfs and the UV delay in dwarf novae
We present ASCA observations of the dwarf nova Z Camelopardalis during outburst and during a transition from quiescence to another outburst. At the beginning of the transition the X-ray count rate was an order of magnitude higher and the…
The prototype nova-like variable VY Sculptoris was observed by the IUE during four different optical brightness states of the system. The FUV flux level from the highest state to the lowest state declines by a factor of 28. We have carried…
A theoretical light curve is constructed for the quiescent phase of the recurrent nova U Scorpii in order to resolve the existing distance discrepancy between the outbursts (6 kpc) and the quiescences (14 kpc). Our U Sco model consists of a…
We present a spectral analysis of XMM-Newton data of ten dwarf novae, nine of which were observed during a quiescent state. The X-ray spectra indicate the presence of a hot, optically thin plasma with a temperature distribution consistent…
Models of nova outbursts suggest that an X-ray flash should occur just after hydrogen ignition. However, this X-ray flash has never been observationally confirmed. We present four theoretical light curves of the X-ray flash for two very…
We present 4.5$\mu$m and 8$\mu$m photometric observations of 18 cool white dwarfs obtained with the Spitzer Space Telescope. Our observations demonstrate that four white dwarfs with T_eff< 6000 K show slightly depressed mid-infrared fluxes…
We have used HST/COS to obtain a series of 4 FUV (915-2148A) spectroscopic observations of the prototypical dwarf nova U Geminorum during its cooling following a two-week outburst. Our FUV spectral analysis of the data indicates that the…
We present parallax observations and a detailed model atmosphere analysis of 54 cool and ultracool ($T_{\rm eff}$ < 4000 K) white dwarfs (WDs) in the solar neighbourhood. For the first time, a large number of cool and ultracool WDs have…
Observations of planetary material polluting the atmospheres of white dwarfs are an important probe of the bulk composition of exoplanetary material. Medium- and high-resolution optical and ultraviolet spectroscopy of seven white dwarfs…
We present Hubble Space Telescope observations of the upper part (T_eff> 10 000 K) of the white dwarf cooling sequence in the globular cluster 47 Tucanae and measure a luminosity function of hot white dwarfs. Comparison with previous…
We report the discovery of a new, non-eclipsing SU UMa-type dwarf nova, HS 2219+1824. Photometry obtained in quiescence (V ~ 17.5) reveals a double-humped light curve from which we derive an orbital period of ~ 86.2 min. Additional…
Novae are thermonuclear eruptions on accreting white dwarfs in interacting binaries. Although most of the accreted envelope is expelled, the mechanism -- impulsive ejection, multiple outflows or prolonged winds, or a common-envelope…
We argue that the quiescent value of the viscosity parameter of the accretion disc in WZ Sge may be alpha_{cold}~0.01, in agreement with estimates of alpha_{cold} for other dwarf novae. Assuming the white dwarf in WZ Sge to be magnetic, we…
We use the Shaviv and Wehrse (1991) code to model the vertical structure and the emission properties of quiescent dwarf nova discs. We find that in the case of HT Cas the quiescent disc must be optically thin, in contradiction with the…
The classical nova V392 Per 2018 is characterized by a very fast optical decline, long binary orbital period of 3.23 days, detection of GeV gamma rays, and almost identical decay trends of $B$, $V$, and $I_{\rm C}$ light curves. The last…
We discuss two mechanisms that could result in an enhancement of the mass transfer rate during outbursts of dwarf novae and soft X-ray transients: the hot outer disc rim itself could heat the L1 point and scattered radiation by optically…
We present an analysis of optical and infrared spectra of the recurrent nova RS Oph obtained during between 2006 and 2009. The best fit to the optical spectrum for 2006 September 28 gives effective temperature Tef = 3900~K for log g = 2.0,…
Sufficiently old white dwarfs cool down through a convective envelope that directly couples their degenerate cores to the surface. Magnetic fields may inhibit this convection by stiffening the criterion for convective instability. We…
We numerically study the tidal instability of accretion discs in close binary systems using a two-dimensional SPH code. We find that the precession rate of tidally unstable, eccentric discs does not only depend upon the binary mass ratio q.…
The article covers the physical properties and evolution of single white dwarfs ranging in temperature from 20,000K to 200,000 and higher, the hottest know electron-degenerate stars. After discussing the classification of their spectra, the…